IgE antibodies to food allergens detected by ELISA, RAST and monkey PCA.

IgE antibody to twelve common food and inhalant allergens was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in the sera of thirteen atopic patients with one or more allergic disorders (asthma occurring in eleven; rhinitis in ten; eczema in six; urticaria in four; mouth and gastro-intestinal symptoms in six), of twelve non-atopic patients with various clinical symptoms (asthma in four; rhinitis in four; eczema in one; urticaria in two; mouth and gastro-intestinal symptoms in four) and sixteen cord blood sera. The atopic patients had significantly higher IgE ELISA values to the twelve allergens tested than non-atopic persons (P less than 0.01) and cord blood sera (P less than 0.001). Further investigation of IgE antibody to egg white in a group of twenty-two maternal-infant-paired sera using RAST and ELISA techniques showed two cord blood sera that had reproducible RAST values significantly greater than the mean of the maternal group. This was confirmed by RAST inhibition studies but not by monkey PCA tests. High IgE ELISA values to egg white extract did not correlate with RAST results.